Second Chances
by Naomi Wiflath
Summary: Sequel to "The seventh Year" The truth is finally revealed, and Inuyasha is now all alone. Will his old friends give him a second chance? And what is this new growing dark power? Inuyasha,Harry Potter crossover
1. Chapter 1: The Truth Revealed

Chapter 1

The Truth Revealed

Inuyasha gave a an angry howl. He shook with an immense rage that he had never felt before. He was finally breaking through. He felt a burning sensation around his neck, but couldn't feel pain. A voice cackled menacingly in his head.

_How pathetic. I was sure either you or Kagome would have broken the spell by now. _It hissed.

"You bastard, how dare you do this to me!" Inuyasha snarled back, blood now was dripping slowly down his neck. The pain intensifying. The voice laughed again, making Inuyasha's blood boil.

"Stop it! Stop laughing!" Inuyasha yelled in vain, his head in his hands.

_Go ahead, get angry. Destroy yourself. After all, what more do you have to live for? _The voice taunted.

All of Inuyasha's rage just seemed to drain away. He was left there, the voice still cackling in his head. His gaze was towards to well, but was unseeing.

_What's wrong? Give up already? That's something I never expected from you._

Inuyasha closed his eyes, a tear rolled down his face. The voice yelled out in pain and anger.

_What are you doing! You don't truly miss her! Aaarggg!_

A black collar materialized around his neck. It pulsed as a giant crack appeared across it. The voice hissed angerly at Inuyasha as another tear fell to the ground. Another crack etched across the collar. 

"She's gone… She'll never come back." Whispered Inuyasha quietly. The voice gave one last bitter cry before the collar shattered. A ring of blood remained where the collar once was. Inuyasha sighed heavily as he wiped his face with the back of his hand. His heart felt suddenly void of emotion. Completely empty. He just sat there, on his knees. He had lost everything.

He laid down, curled up beside the well. He felt extremely tired. He closed his eyes and immediately fell into a dreamless sleep…

When he woke back up, it was nighttime. The full moon glistened innocently above him. He sat up, and yawned. Had that all been a bad dream? Inuyasha knew there was only one way to find out. He stood up and looked over into the well. He felt a small twinge of fear, but ignored it. He jumped into the well without a second thought, but landed at the bottom. He looked up to see the full moon staring back down at him. He feared this would happen, Kagome had sealed off the well.

He jumped back out and sat on the ledge of the well. Had she truly forgotten him? Did she hate him like she said she did? For some reason Inuyasha knew she did, but didn't want to believe it. How couldn't have she seen that he was under a spell by Naraku. His last attempt to torture them even after his demise.

He felt like he failed. He had failed Kagome, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo… All of them. Just because he wasn't strong enough to throw off the spell. He felt extremely weak, useless. What was there for him to do now? What do the others think? At least he could tell them what happened. He got up and set off to Sango and Miroku's house. Surely they'd believe him. So he set off. It was half a day's walk from here, so he'd get there by morning.

Sango and Miroku's house was just a small cottage outside a village. Smoke was rising steadily from a fire inside. They must be up. He continued forward, but stopped. He felt a familiar prickle at the back of his neck. He reached his hand forward, and was met by a painful shock. Kagome had put a barrier around their house. Just to spite him no less. So he sat down against a tree and waited. Surely they'd leave to go to the village.

It had been about an hour before someone came out of the house, it was Miroku. He was walking towards Inuyasha when he stopped. He raised his staff.

"Who goes there?" he asked. Inuyasha stood up in front of him. Miroku was just within the barrier. "What do you want here Inuyasha? We don't have anything you'd want." He said sternly, watching Inuyasha carefully.

"Miroku… It's me. I mean… The real me. We need to talk." Replied Inuyasha, taking a step closer.

"Stay back! I can hear you just fine from here." Warned Miroku.

"Do you really hate me. Have I really been that bad?" asked Inuyasha sadly. Miroku still watched him, on guard.

"Why do act like you don't know. You turned against us, for your dead love Kikyo." Said Miroku.

"That wasn't me. I was put under a spell by Naraku!" replied Inuyasha. He really wanted him to realize he was telling the truth.

"Lies, Naraku is dead and you should know that." Replied Miroku.

"No! I mean, I know he's dead. But he put some kind of spell on me, to turn us all against each other. It looks like it worked…" said Inuyasha sadly.

"What proof of that do you have?"

"I…" Inuyasha's heart sank. How was he suppost to prove he's changed if there was no proof. He sighed.

"Just as I thought. You've tried this trick before. I am not stupid." Replied Miroku. Inuyasha turned and left. What else was he suppost to do? He knew if Miroku didn't believe him, then Shippo surely wouldn't. Shippo liked Kagome a lot.

He was all alone now. No were to go. So he decided to wander, and avoid everyone. To swim in his own guilt. He didn't have anything else to do. So he set off…

Would he ever get a second chance?

……….

Authors Note: Hello everyone. Now don't worry, I will still continue my other fan fics. It's just I've had an idea for this one for a long time and wanted to get it in type. I've been in a huge writing spree lately. I hope you enjoy this fan fic as well. And if things don't add up, read the original story called The Seventh Year by Ambarina.

Naomi Wiflath

……….


	2. Chapter 2: The Magic Girl

Chapter 2

The Magic Girl

It has been about five months since Inuyasha started wandering. Even now he was still wallowing in his guilt. On his journey, he had helped many people, hoping that it would ease his guilt. Thinking that if he repented enough, Kagome would come back. But he knew it wouldn't ever happen.

Inuyasha was walking down the forest path. He knew immediately where he was, and wanted to avoid it. But something kept pushing him forward. So he continued walking, letting his feet guide him. After a minute he realized where he was going. He was going to the God tree. Inuyasha continued walking until he stopped in front of it. His head was immediately flooded with memories of the past. It made his heart ache.

"Kagome…" he whispered softly. Then a strange sent came to his nose. He strained his ears, listening for any sound, then sniffed the air again. The smell was very close. It was a human. It was coming from the other side of the God tree. He walked over to the other side. There, slumped against the tree, was a girl. She was unconscious. Inuyasha sat down beside her, getting a closer look. He had never seen anyone this strange since Kagome. The girl had on some kind of black robes on. She had long brunette hair. In her hand, clutched tightly was some kind of stick. Inuyasha thought her to be very strange, not even Kagome ever dressed like this.

The girl then moved, then opened her eyes. She looked at Inuyasha for a moment, then pointed the strange stick at him. Inuyasha just blinked.

"Who are you?" she asked, sounding shaken. 

"Inuyasha." He replied dully. He saw her eyes glance up at his ears.

"What are you?" she asked, the stick still pointed at Inuyasha's face.

"A Hanyou." He replied. The girl looked at him confused.

"What?"

"Han-You. I'm half dog demon." He replied irritated.

"A demon? You must work for Voldemort." She said bitterly. Now it was Inuyasha's turn to be confused.

"Volll-da-morte? What are you talking about?" she looked at him in disbelief.

"Voldemort. You know, the dark wizard that goes around and kills people." She replied.

"No, I don't know." He replied simply. Wondering what the girl was rambling on about.

"You really don't know… do you." She replied, lowering her hand, but still clutched the stick tightly.

"No. So who are you?" he asked. The girl sighed.

"My name is Naomi. Were am I?" she asked.

"At the God tree, we're not far from Kaede's village."  Naomi turned around and looked at the tree.

"I wonder what went wrong…" she said quietly.

"What went wrong?" he asked.

"Oh, you heard that? Er… it's nothing." She said quickly, standing up.

"What was that thing you were pointing at me?" he asked, standing up too.

"This?" she replied, holding up the stick. "This is a wand. I use it to do magic." She replied simply.

"Like a priestess?" he asked as he started walking towards Kaede's village, Naomi followed.

"Er… I wouldn't know. But I am a witch." She said simply. "Or, almost. I'm a seventh year at Hogwarts."

"Hogwarts?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You really don't know anything." She sighed. "It's a school where kids like me learn magic. When I say I'm a seventh year, that means I've been there seven years."

"Pretty long for just school." Replied Inuyasha.

"Better then muggle schools. You have to go through at _least_ twelve years of school. Not counting college."

"Muggle?" he asked.

"Humans that can't do magic." She replied.

"Er… Right. So where is this school?" He asked.

"Somewhere in Britain. No one knows exactly where it is, it's a highly kept secret."

"Why?"

"Beats me." She shrugged.

They entered the outskirts of the village where there were some villagers working in a rice field. They looked at Inuyasha and ran in fear.

"Why are they running?"  Naomi asked, Inuyasha shrugged.

"They probably think I'm gonna eat them or sumthin." He replied dully.

"You wouldn't really do that, would you?" Naomi asked.

"No, it's all stupid lies Kaede put into their heads. Heck, I wonder if she's even still alive."

"Why would she lie about you?" Naomi asked. Inuyasha looked at her.

"Its… A long story." He said, looking back to the road. Villagers where now in their huts, watching them out the doors or windows.

"Who goes there?" said a woman before them. She wore the traditional priestess clothes, and had a bow and arrow pointed at them.

"I'm Inuyasha, and this is Naomi. We mean you no harm! So stop listening to that old bat Kaede!" Inuyasha yelled. Naomi stood behind him. The woman lowered her bow, she smiled.

"Ah, so you are Inuyasha. Follow me." She said, walking into an empty hut. Inuyasha and Naomi followed. They all sat down inside.

"For give me. My name is Mika. I am the priestess here." She said simply. Naomi looked to Inuyasha and frowned. Mika laughed.

"So what happened to Kaede?" asked Inuyasha.

"She is still alive, but is very old. She always warns the villagers of you." She said simply. "But I know better, tales of your good deeds have spread far." She said.

"Just great…" said Inuyasha. Mika laughed again.

"Do you not want people to know?"

"No really."

"Well you're in luck. No one in this village believes you're nice. Even I tell them you are." She sighed.

"Why don't they believe you?"  asked Naomi.

"Because… I am the new priestess, taking the place of Kaede. But many thought I wasn't ready. Most of the villagers ignore me." She said sadly. "But, I must still do my job…"

"Must be difficult." said Naomi simply.  Mika looked at Naomi curiously.

"Where are you from? I have never seen clothes like that before."

"Yea, and how did you get here?" added Inuyasha. Naomi took a deep breath, then sighed.

"As I've told you Inuyasha, I have been going to a school in Britain. On certain weekends, we are allowed to go to a place called Hogsmede. It's a small Wizarding town. I was there one weekend when Voldemort attacked it. He tried to kill me with the Avada Kedavra curse. But something went wrong and I woke up here. We must be miles away from Britain."

"So you didn't come from the well?" replied Inuyasha.

"Well? No, somehow I was transported here by the spell." She replied.

"Spell? This Voldemort person can do magic? Or is he a demon?" asked Mika, Naomi frowned.

"He seems like a demon, but no. Just a wizard that went bad. As bad as you could get. I never had a chance against his level of magic."

"You can do magic too?" asked Mika. Naomi nodded.

"Yes, hmmm. Here's a simple spell." She took out her wand and pointed it at a bowl on a shelf. "_Wingardium Leviosa!" _she said, and the bowl floated up. She moved her wand in circles, making the bowl float around in circles above their heads. She then pointed her wand back to the shelf and the bowl floated back to it. Naomi smiled and looked back to them. Mika looked back at her, astonished. Inuyasha was fairly impressed.

"That was incredible! How did you do that? Even I don't know such magic!" said Mika.

"It's only a simple spell. Anyone who knows magic can do it. Unless maybe if you're a squib." Replied Naomi, pocketing her wand.

"Why do you use that stick-"

"Wand" Naomi cut in.

"Right, wand. To do magic?"

"You don't?" replied Naomi. Mika shook her head.

"Strange… Only person I know who doesn't need a wand for magic is Dumbledore." Naomi mumbled. Inuyasha didn't bother to ask.

"Well, anyway. You two are welcome to stay here for a while if you like. I can make some supper." Said Mika, clapping her hands together.

"I guess I could stay for a free meal." Said Inuyasha.

"Good, I'm starving!" replied Naomi. Mika smiled and started making Miso soup.


	3. Chapter 3: Omen from the Future

Chapter 3

Omen from the Future

Inuyasha laid on the roof of the hut. Naomi and Mika were sleeping below him. He could hear their breathing. He looked up at the stars, the full moon shining brightly again. He wondered what he should do, if he should leave her here, or take her with him. She could be useful. He closed his eyes and fell into a dreamless sleep.

Inuyasha was awake at daybreak. He just sat on the hut roof, watching all the village people run around doing whatever. He was surprised they didn't see him. Mika had also gotten up early. She was off helping a man with an injured leg in another village. Naomi still hadn't waken up.

"Hey Inuyasha!" called someone below. It was Naomi. Inuyasha jumped down from the hut roof beside her.

"Hey." He mumbled. Naomi looked off to the south, a look of concern on her face.

"What is it?" He asked. Naomi shrugged.

"I dunno, something just seems… I don't know. I can't explain it. But it's giving me a bad feeling." Inuyasha looked in the same direction. He suddenly felt like he had stepped in a tub of ice water. He quickly shook the feeling away.

"I'm… sure it's nothing." He replied. He turned again, to a familiar sent. Miroku and Sango were walking towards them. Kirara followed them closely behind. Inuyasha stepped in front if Naomi.

"What do you want." He said coldly. Miroku and Sango stopped before him.

"Inuyasha…" started Miroku, but stopped.

"What? Come to say you were sorry?" snapped Inuyasha, his temper rising.

"We didn't… I mean we weren't sure…" said Sango.

"I told you what happened! Why didn't you believe me!" Inuyasha snapped again. Sango looked at the ground. Suddenly Inuyasha felt as if he had cold water dumped on his head again.

"Aggg! Why won't that stop!" Inuyasha growled frustrated. Miroku suddenly looked serious, looking to the south.

"Inuyasha… You felt it too?" asked Miroku.

"What's it to you?" he snapped back.

"Something's coming. Something bad. The Aura is huge, and blackest I've ever seen." said Sango. Kirara growled. Naomi shivered severely.

"Not them… not them…" She was mumbling.

"What? You know what it is?" Inuyasha asked.

"He must have sent them after me. He must have known he didn't kill me. You've gotta get out of here." said Naomi, still shivering.

"But the village, we must protect it." Said Sango.

"No, I'll run. Draw them away. All their after is me." Naomi said.

"But what are they?" Inuyasha asked again.

"Dementors. Phantom like creatures. They feed of the joy and happiness of other creatures. They also have the ability to swallow your soul." Naomi replied, pulling her cloak more tightly around her.

"We'll come with you. We'll help you defeat them!" said Sango. Naomi shook her head.

"No, You're wasting your time. You don't even know how to fight them. You'll die!" She glanced at the south nervously again.

"Tell us how so we can defeat them." said Miroku in a forced calm. Inuyasha shivered again.

"You cant! Unless you know the right spell you can't fight them! Even if you did, it would take a while to master." Naomi said franticly. "We're wasting time. I'll draw them away!" Naomi then bolted down the path that leads to the forest.

"We gotta go after her!" said Sango, Miroku grabbed her arm.

"No, you stay  with Nai. I'll go." said Miroku. Sango nodded, it was only just then Inuyasha noticed the baby on Sango's back.

"Kirara! Go with Miroku!" said Sango. Kirara transformed and Miroku hopped onto her back.

"You coming Inuyasha?" he asked. Inuyasha nodded. Just like old times. They then took off. Inuyasha running beside Kirara. They got into the forest and were immediately plunged into darkness. Inuyasha couldn't see or hear anything. Lost in darkness. He didn't know where Miroku went. Inuyasha collapsed to his knees, shivering violently. It was like his blood had turned to ice. He could hear someone laughing, high pitched and cold. Images flashed before him. He was wrapped in some blanket, surrounded in fire. His mother was laying beside him screaming. Being burned alive. His heart gave a sickening jolt. Then it changed. Inuyasha felt a pain in his chest, he was just shot by Kikyo. He looked up at her. No, not Kikyo. Kagome? Then it quickly changed again, his blood was now on fire. His claws were covered in Kagome's blood. _No, What is this? This wasn't me._ He thought franticly. The scene changed again, He was kneeling beside the well. Engulfed in pain and grief. The collar burning against his skin.

"_Expecto Patronum!_" called a voice far away. 

Inuyasha opened his eyes. He was on his back, Naomi as kneeling beside him. He was covered in cold sweat. It was as dark out as it would be at night. The sun shining like the full moon.

"You ok?" she asked, panting heavily. Inuyasha sat up, feeling shaken. Naomi's gaze turned. "Not more!" she said. Inuyasha started to shiver again. Naomi jumped up, her wand pointed out in front of her. Inuyasha turned. Something was floating towards them, not human, not demon. Not dead nor alive. There were eight of them, there rotting hands outward, as if reaching for them.

"You want me! Come get me! I dare ya!" Naomi yelled, she was shivering again. She then closed her eyes. _What are you doing?!_  Inuyasha thought franticly. His voice didn't seem to be working. He felt like he couldn't move. Paralyzed. The eight creatures coming closer. Naomi opened her eyes suddenly.

"_EXPECTO PATRONUM!" _she bellowed. A Bright silver light erupted from the end of her wand. Inuyasha had to shield his eyes. Two silver glowing creatures erupted from it, one a giant eagle. It swooped down, slashing at the creatures with it's talons. The other, a large wolf. It pounced forward, practically shredding the dementor it was attacking. With another white flash they were gone, dementors and all. The light returned, everything was back to normal. Naomi was still panting, she pocketed her wand then offered Inuyasha a hand. He accepted, and stood up.

"Those were…" started Inuyasha.

"Dementors. They make you relive the worst parts of your life over again." She said.

Miroku and Kirara came and skidded into a halt beside them. Miroku looked pale.

"You ok?" she asked. He nodded.

"I never want to go through that again." said Miroku simply.

"No one does. I don't think he'll send them after me again if he knows I can defeat them…" she trailed off, deep in thought.

"I never imagined such terrible creatures existed. I've never seen one before." Said Miroku. The were now walking back to the village.

"Most people can't see them. Only witches and wizards can see them. But everyone can feel them." Naomi said simply.

"But what was it that you did to defeat them?" asked Inuyasha.

"Patronus spell. But it reacted strangely. I've never had a double patronus. It's usually just the eagle."

"Those creatures?" Inuyasha asked. Naomi nodded.

"It's the only way to defeat a dementor."

"How were we able to see them if we aren't wizards?" asked Miroku. Naomi shrugged.

"There must be something magic about you." She said simply.

"Well, I am a monk with spiritual powers." Added Miroku.

"That'd be it then. Inuyasha can probably see them cause he's part demon. It affects him more cause his senses are more powerful then a normal humans. Er, by the looks of it." Continued Naomi.

"Just great…" said Inuyasha, Naomi smiled.

"You don't have to worry as long as I'm around. To tell you the truth, I never thought I could fight off so many."

They got back to the village and were met by Mika and Sango.

"Thank god you're alright!" said Sango, hugging Miroku.

"I came as soon as I could. Is everything alright?" asked Mika. Inuyasha nodded. Mika sighed heavily.

"Good."

They all sat in a hut. Sango was holding Nai, who was sleeping. Miroku sat beside her, across from Inuyasha. Naomi sat beside Inuyasha, Mika beside her.

"So who are you? I've never seen anyone quite like you." said Sango.

"I'm Naomi. I'm from Britain, well not really. But that's where I'm suppost to be. Do you know what country we're in?" Naomi asked.

"Ah, I remember Kagome talking about this." Said Miroku.

"Who's Kagome?" Naomi asked. Miroku looked to Inuyasha, then sighed.

"She's a girl from the future." Said Miroku.

"Oh? What year?"

"Year? I think she said something like 1996. What ever that means, But that was years ago." Replied Miroku.

"How may years ago? It's 2004 now."

"Well… She called this time the feudal era." Said Miroku, Naomi looked at him astonished.

"But… That was a long time ago! In Japan I think."

"That's were we are. Japan. It sounds like you're from the future too. Just like Kagome" Replied Sango. Naomi looked at the floor, deep in thought.

"It makes sense. That's why it's so primitive. That's why there's demons. They don't exist in my time. Or that I know of… But why would dementors be here?" she asked. Miroku shook his head.

"I wouldn't know." Naomi sighed.

"Maybe he came after me, through time. But I wouldn't know why. I'm not that important. Why would he go to the trouble to make sure I'm dead?"

"Have you done something to really tick him off?" Inuyasha asked.

"You don't have to have gotten him mad for him to decide to kill you. Maybe he just doesn't want anyone else to survive an encounter with him. Harry had done so many times…" She looked at the floor, sighing sadly.

"Who's this Harry?" asked Miroku. Naomi took a moment to answer, when she did, it sounded like it took some effort.  

"Harry Potter… The only one to ever survive an attack by Voldemort. His parents died trying to save him, he was very young when it happened. He… was in the same year I was. He went off to fight Voldemort, but disappeared…" she stopped and took another deep breath. Inuyasha could smell her salty tears, which she would quickly wipe away. He felt bad for her.

"We all believe he is dead. Never to come back…" she said again, swallowing hard.

"I'm… sorry. I didn't know. I shouldn't of asked." replied Miroku. Naomi gave a weak smile.

"It's ok. I shouldn't feel sad. He'd say I'm being stupid." She wiped off her face, then took another deep breath. It was another awkward silence. Nai yawned, and opened her eyes. She looked up at Sango, smiling. She then reached up and pulled Sango's hair. Sango winced and pulled Nai's hand away.

"Nai, you don't pull hair!" said Sango, Nai just giggled. Apparently it was just a game for her. Sango looked to Inuyasha.

"You want to hold Nai?" she asked.

"Oh, everything is back to the way it was before now eh? Why the change of heart?" asked Inuyasha bitterly.

"Word of what you have done has spread. We realized that you wouldn't have done that before. We're really sorry. We should have trusted you." Some of Inuyasha's anger drained away.

"Yea, whatever." He replied. Sango smiled and put Nai in Inuyasha's arms. He looked down at her, she giggled, reaching to pull his hair. Inuyasha caught her hand, making her giggle even more. Sango moved to sit next to Inuyasha.

"Nai, this is Inuyasha." She said. Nai put her hand on Inuyasha's face. She had blue eyes and short, black hair.

That night, Inuyasha laid on his back, his hands behind his head. He was on top of the hut, gazing up at the stars. He wondered what he should do now…


	4. Chapter 4: Darkness at Bay

Chapter 4

Darkness at Bay

Kagome was sitting at her desk. It was the first day after an extended Christmas break. She yawned and stretched her arms. Her class would be coming in about fifteen minutes. She had agreed to finish teaching this year and would maybe even teach next year if Albus would let her take an extravagant vacation over summer. The student's spirits (especially the Gryffindor's) have risen dramatically. Especially after Harry's return and the defeat of Voldemort. The bell rang and the students drifted in. She had Gryffindor this hour. Harry, Ron and Hermione walked in, deep in conversation and sat in the front of the room. Soon all of the students were present. They looked at Kagome and Harry, whispering to each other quietly. Kagome stood up and the room fell silent. There were a couple desks empty that at the beginning of the year were full. Many students fell victim to Voldemort during the December Hogsmede visit. Kagome sighed.

"Today we will be working on shield charms. If you turn to page 289 in your books, you will see the one we will work on today." Everyone opened their books to the page, then looked back to Kagome, waiting quietly. Kagome walked around in front of her desk.

"Shield charms are very difficult. The strength of the shield depends on what type of shield charm as well as the magic put into it. Today we'll be working on the second level charm. Most of you know of the basic level which repels basic spells. This charm allows you to block more than one basic spell. In order to perform the spell, you must say '_Protra Spectrum_.' Now split up into groups of three and practice the spell by having the two others use simple spells against you. The spells should be reflected back at your partners." The class immediately split up and started practicing without complaint. Neville used the disarming charm on his partner but missed and hit the back of Ron's head, making him fall over. Knocking down some chairs. Other than that, everything went smoothly. 

The day went by quickly, and before Kagome knew it, it was dinner time. She sat at her usual spot at the staff table, next to Minerva and Albus. The bewitched ceiling showed a cloudless night. The stars sparkled innocently above. The students talked to themselves, a group of Ravenclaw were laughing hysterically. The first time Kagome seen the students laugh. Actually enjoying themselves with renewed energy.

The students suddenly became quiet, Dumbledore had stood up.

"Students, this is a joyous time!  We may now sleep peacefully in our beds, our minds free of worry. Except for homework of course." Some of the students laughed.

"We can thank two people for this. Together they destroyed Voldemort. Of course you know who I'm talking about. None other than our own Harry Potter, and Professor Higurashi." He paused a moment, as if trying to remember something, then continued.

"Harry, fooled us all, even Voldemort. Making us believe he was gone.  Professor Higurashi has extraordinary magic power, unlike any other. Together they defeated Voldemort, using everything they could to their advantage, right on these very school grounds. So I dedicate this feast to them." Dumbledore raised his glass, all the students raised theirs.

"To the bravery of Harry Potter and Professor Higurashi!" All the students repeated this with enthusiasm.

"But, we must not forget of those students who lost their lives. Innocent, caught at the wrong place at the wrong time. Losing fellow housemates is difficult, but their deaths have now been avenged. So they may now rest in peace." Dumbledore raised his glass again.

"To those who fell victim to Voldemort, let them rest in peace." The students bowed their heads and said quietly 'To those innocent who perished at the hand of Voldemort." A shiver went through the crowed. Many still had difficulty saying Voldemort name. Dumbledore put back his smile.

"Now, enough talking. There is nothing we can do abut the past but live for the future! Lets tuck in!" the golden plates in front of them became laden with wondrous food.

"Albus, you really didn't have to do this." said Kagome, putting some food on her plate.

"If you want, just think of it as an excuse to have a feast." He replied, smiling. "Ah, dumplings! My favorite!" Kagome laughed.

That night, Kagome had a strange dream. It was one she had been having ever since Voldemort's defeat.  

She was standing at the well, it was night time. Inuyasha was across form her, pinned against a tree. A girl in Hogwarts robes stood beside him, her wand raised.

"Why did you do that? He was innocent!" she yelled bitterly.

"He tried to kill me! He never loved me!" Kagome yelled back.

"You were tricked! That is not the enemy. He isn't dead!" she snarled back.

"Yes he is still alive, he is now under a spell." said Kagome.

"No! Not him! Look in your past! There is were you will find it lurking!" Snapped back the girl.

"Yea I made some mistakes! Like ever trusting Inuyasha!" Kagome sensed a demons aura from the girl, she got another arrow and pointed it at her. "You aren't human! How dare you trick me!"

"I am not demon! What's wrong with you!" said the girl, the aura becoming stronger.

"You lie!" Yelled Kagome. The demon girl turned and bolted through the trees, Kagome close behind. It wasn't long before the girl stopped, Kagome stopped a safe distance from her. The girl leaned her back against the God tree, panting heavily. Kagome raised her arrow, pointing it at the demon. The girl just looked back at her, unable to move.

"Die demon!" Kagome yelled as she let the arrow go. It hit the girl, square in the heart, pinning her to the tree. The girl grabbed at the arrow in her chest, blood dripping off it.

"You are blind…" the girl choked out before slumping forward. Her Hogwarts robes now soaked in blood.

"I thought I could trust you." Said a voice behind her. She whirled around to see it was Harry Potter. He glared at her with an immense hatred.   

Kagome woke up with a jolt. She looked at her clock. It was only seven a clock in the morning. She sighed with relief, she was worried that she had slept in. She got dressed in her light blue robes then set off for breakfast. But when se got there she had lost her appetite. She poked at her eggs and bacon, still dwelling on the dream. It was a lot clearer this time. Before it was only short little bits of what she saw last night. Kagome wondered if it meant anything.

Kagome didn't notice Dumbledore watching her. She turned to be met with his gaze. His piercing blue eyes looked back behind his half moon spectacles. Kagome looked away, she had a feeling he could see right through her.

"Is something wrong?" He asked.

"Oh, no. Nothing. Just still tired." She replied, giving a fake yawn.

"Very well. If you ever need to talk about something, you can come to me." He replied before taking a bite of bacon.

For some reason Kagome felt like he already knew.

The morning mail came. A barn owl flew down and landed in front of Kagome. She took the paper from it and put a coin in the little pouch on it's leg. It flew off and she unfurled the paper. It was the Daily Prophet. Kagome sighed. The front page article's title was 'Death Eaters claim He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is still alive.' She read the article below it.

"I knew this would happen." She mumbled to herself. The Death Eaters were now going about on killing sprees. The ministry was having a lot of problems getting them under control. The Dementors are still ignoring the ministry's orders and are believed to be in hiding.

_One mess after another…_Thought Kagome, putting the paper down.


	5. Chapter 5: Aftermath

Chapter 5

Aftermath

"Ugh, just rubbish!" said Hermione, sounding disgusted.

"Huh?" Harry was poking at his Eggs and Bacon, not really paying attention to anything.  His mind tended to wander lately.

"Look." She said again, shoving the paper in front of Harry. He looked at it.

"Yea?" he replied dully.

"They all think Voldemort's still alive." replied Hermione, unhappy Harry didn't care.

"It's impossible." He replied dully. "He's dead. That's that. They're just trying to scare people."

"Mmm mya, But. Mmm it's mossable." said Ron through a mouthful of food. Hermione gave him an unapproving glare.

"Don't talk with your mouth full!" she scolded. Ron swallowed it down, and then took a drink of orange juice.

"I said, it's possible."  He then shoveled more food into his mouth.  

"You think he's still alive?" Harry replied, getting irritated. Ron shook his head quickly, then swallowed hard.

"No way Mate! After what you did to him?" he exclaimed.

"I dunno. It seemed, almost too easy. It all happened so quickly. And I thought he said he couldn't die." replied Harry.

"Harry, he can't be alive… He just can't… Can he?" Hermione asked, a hint of panic in her voice. Harry shrugged.

"He is the only other one to survive an Avada Kedavra. Other then me."

"That's right… He survived the curse that was originally for you. He was hit right on…" said Hermione weakly, Ron looked like he was gonna throw up. Ron swallowed hard, then pushed his plate away.

"You don't think that… he just turned back to how he was before? Possessing people?" said Ron weakly. Harry remembered the baby thing that Wormtail held the night he returned. Maybe he was out there somewhere, Wormtail carrying him around as a baby. In some cave, maybe even in the forbidden forest. Harry shivered at the thought.

"Lets not jump to conclusions. We don't know. Maybe the Death Eaters really are just pulling our leg." said Hermione, trying to sound reassuring.

"What if the Death Eaters know something we don't?" said Ron shakily. Maybe he didn't really die. Like, he faked it." Hermione looked horrified at the idea. Harry's mind started racing. _It's possible, yes. But we saw him die. He's dead, gone, forever… Isn't he?_ The idea of Voldemort still being alive seemed to become more and more likely to Harry the more he thought about it. _He could have had some one posing as him. Or maybe he preformed a spell similar to mine. But that flash of light. What was that? I know we hit him, but he then disappeared. Did he disintegrate? Or was he sent somewhere else? Maybe he teleported at the last second to his hideout or something. _Harry felt that Dumbledore should know about this possibility. But what if he already knew? Maybe he knew for sure Voldemort is dead? Harry decided that he'd ask Dumbledore and Kagome. Maybe she could sense his aura.

After breakfast, they headed off to their first class, which happened to be care of magical creatures. They walked down and out onto the lawn. Crunching through three inches of snow. Most of the students wore their dragon hide gloves to keep their hands warm. They all stood outside Hagrids hut, shivering. Soon Hagrid walked from behind the hut, beaming at them. He had a dead dear over one shoulder.

"Welcome Class. I've got a grea' lesson for yeh today. Foller' me." He said before turning around and walking back behind his hut. The students gingerly followed.

"Why do I have a feeling the creatures this year are much more dangerous…" said Harry.

"If you can imagine that they can get anymore dangerous, I know they can." said Ron.

"Shh, don't let Hagrid hear." whispered Hermione. They were lead unsurprisingly into the forbidden forest. But didn't go very far. They stopped at a large field. Harry wondered where all the centaurs went, but didn't care to worry very long. A large growl came from somewhere in the field, making some of the students twitch. Harry couldn't find this creature they were suppost to see. All he saw was snow. It was so white it could blind someone. Hagrid stood with his back to them, apparently looking for the creature.

"Hagrid… How did you get one of those?" Hermione asked, looking terrified. Harry thought this was a stupid question. 'Where is it." Was more like it.

"Charlie helped me get one. Do you see em?" Hagrid asked. Hermione nodded and pointed to what appeared to be a snow covered lump with something black laying on it.

"Sno' Ball! Sno' Ball! Cum' 'ere!" called Hagrid.

"You call it snow ball?" asked Hermione in disbelief. Harry didn't see what was so scary until the bush opened a glowing red eye. The creature stood up. It did not look like a bush any more. It was about seven feet tall. It had silvery fur and scales. On it's scaly feet where huge black claws. It had long furry ears and a long snout. It had almost a mane of fur around it's neck and had silver spikes going down it's back and disappearing into a large fluffy tail. Snow Ball just looked back at them before walking towards them. It had a black studded collar around it's neck.

"This, class, is a Xaio. Sumthin' between a dragon and wolf. They stand abou' four ter eleven feet tall." started Hagrid. The Xaio gave a mighty roar, stomping the ground with it's dinner plate sized paws. It's claws making gashes in the ground.

"Ok, ok." Said Hagrid, throwing the deer's carcass in front of the beast, which immediately started devoured it.

"Where was I? Oh yea, Xaio's come from north'rn China. They love the snow and cold…" 

"How did Charlie get this thing here?" asked Ron in disbelief. Hermione and Harry shrugged.

"…Xaio's are almos' completely impervious ter magic. They themselves can perform magic. What specifically is unknown. Each one is differn't. Not to mention not many wizards wan' ter study them as they er very territorial. Very few have been tamed. Luckily, Sno' ball ere' is very tame. You can come up and pet em' if yeh like. But, only a few at a time." Most of the students took a step back, Harry didn't move. He was almost mesmerized by the creature, who stared back at him. He felt like he was being pulled towards it. Without realizing it, he walked right up to the creature.

"Good. Now 'arry, be careful now." said Hagrid, beaming. Harry reached up to touch the creatures head. The Xaio leaned down and sniffed him. Harry petted the creatures head, which was partially scales and partially fur. His fingers tingled when his hand went across it. The creature's very skin sparked with magical energy. Snow ball licked Harry's face with its rough tongue. Harry almost fell over.

"Stop that!" He said laughing, the creature obeyed.

"Tha's great Harry. She really likes yeh." said Hagrid, laughing. Harry looked back at Ron and Hermione, who where gawking at him still. Harry motioned for them to come over. They did, very slowly until they were right in front of it. Ron trembling, Hermione clinging to Ron's arm. Snow Ball sniffed them, gazing into their eyes with its own.

"They won't hurt you." said Harry, petting the Xaio. It looked at him, its eyes strangely familiar to Dumbledore's. Piercing, like they can see right through you. It nodded, like it understood him then turned back to Ron and Hermione.

"It's ok." said Harry. Hermione and Ron looked at each other before reaching up to pet it. It let them do so, and even licked Ron, who fell over in surprise. Hermione giggled.

They walked back to the castle, shivering. They were glad to get up in front of the Gryffindor common room's fire. Sitting in their favorite chairs. Harry had a worried look on his face.

"What's wrong Harry?" asked Ron. Harry looked to him.

"Er… Nothing…" he lied, he didn't really want to talk about it.

"It's about the Hogsmede attack… Isn't it." Said Hermione, Harry sighed.

"How many… Students… Died?" asked Harry sadly.

"About fifteen. Mostly first years. They still haven't found their bodies. Only blood." replied Ron, shivering.

"Eight were Gryffindor." continued Hermione. Both having trouble saying this.

"Name them." said Harry. Ron and Hermione looked to each other for a moment.

"Colin Creevey, Mike Schmidt, Andrew Stonewell, Lavender Brown…" started Hermione.

"Euan Abercrombie, David Perez, Marie Byrd, and Naomi Wiflath…" finished Ron. There was a very painful silence. Harry's mind was numb. For some reason he already knew. Each name appearing in his mind before it was said. He could just imagine how they all died, more terrible then the person before them. Surely the D.A members fought him off. Or tried. Harry didn't think they had a chance even when they were D.A. members. Lavender, Colin and Naomi were the oldest. They must have tried to protect the first years, but were heavily outnumbered…

"Come on! We can hide here!" Naomi yelled to the group of kids behind her. They were all panting from running. They all went into a small and skinny alleyway, off of the main road. It was a dead end, so the first years were against the wall. Naomi, Lavender and Colin stood in front of them, their wands raised.

"If they find us here, we won't stand a chance!" said Lavender, shaking in fear.

"Where are the teachers?!" asked Colin, also shaking.

"I don't know, but it wouldn't matter. They wouldn't have gotten to us in time if we stayed out there." The blood was pounding in Naomi's ears. She was scared to death, but knew she couldn't show it. That's not what the others needed now. They needed courage.

"Keep your wands up, you never know what they will do." said Naomi.

"We're gonna die!" cried Marie, tears falling town her face.

"Shhh, it will be ok. I will do anything I can to protect you guys. They may not even find us." Naomi said reassuringly.

"Oh, I think we'll find you." said a cold voice. Naomi whirled around to see three Death Eaters. In front of them stood the one and only, Voldemort. His white face twisted into a cruel grin. Naomi's eye's flashed, her wand pointed at Voldemort. A terrible rage flared inside her.

"You!" she snarled. Colin and Lavender stepped backwards behind Naomi.

"Me, yes. Did you really think you could escape?" he said, he was thoroughly enjoying this. Naomi just stayed quiet, her heart beating faster, blood full of adrenalin. "Ah yes. You're just like Potter. I like to torture people like you personally. It's fun to watch your spirit break." Naomi's anger flared more, her other hand was clenched into a fist. The first years behind her trembled in fear.

"How… Dare you… Show your face to me… I'll kill you… For what you did to Harry… I'LL KILL YOU!" Naomi snarled, shaking with rage. Her breathing became ragged and quick, her teeth clenched. Voldemort had an amused look on his face.

"Ah yes. That's what many people say before they die. But I don't like your attitude. Maybe we can change it." said Voldemort, raising his wand.

"_EXPELLIARMUS_!" Naomi yelled, Voldemort swiftly dodged.

"Tisk, Tisk. Did you really think that'd work?" Voldemort taunted, Naomi growled in frustration.

"_Impedimenta_!" Naomi yelled out again.

"_Protra Spectrum!_" Voldemort replied, sending the spell back at Naomi. It flung her into the students behind her. She clambered back up again, standing in front of the students.

"I wonder if you know what real pain feels like." Voldemort laughed. Naomi opened her mouth to try to hit him again, but he was quicker. "_Crucio!"_ Naomi fell forward. Red hot knives were stabbing every inch of her skin. Her nerves were on fire. She screamed in pain, some of the students started crying. The pain was almost unbearable, she just wanted to die, to end it. But a voice in the back of her head kept saying _You're stronger then that. You are not weak, you can fight back. _Naomi clutched her wand tightly, not wanting to let go. Like it was her lifeline. After what seemed like ages Voldemort let up his wand. Naomi fell limp, her breathing ragged. "Only ten Minutes and you break. I was expecting more." He sneered.

"_EXPELLARMUS_!" Naomi suddenly yelled, the spell hitting Voldemort head on. He was flung backward while his wand landed next to Naomi. Voldemort didn't know what hit him. Naomi clambered up, still shaking. She put her foot down on Voldemort's wand. The Death Eaters advanced.

"Stop!" Voldemort hissed. They stepped back, Voldemort walked forward. Saying that he was ticked off wouldn't come close. His twisted smile gone. It was Naomi who laughed, it was cold and bitter. One that could rival Voldemort's.

"What's wrong?" she hissed, putting more pressure on Voldemort's wand and making it shoot red sparks. "Afraid? Cause without your wand, your _Nothing._" She sneered again. Voldemort was the one who was angry. This made Naomi laugh more. "Ooh, what's wrong? Afraid word might get out that some girl took away your power in one second." She hissed again. Colin and Lavender stood beside Naomi with renewed courage, still shaking. Their wands raised. The Death Eaters growled angerly…


	6. Chapter 6: A Nightmare

Chapter 6

A Nightmare

"Let me handle this Dark Lord." said one, stepping forward. Naomi growled.

"Malfoy you fool! Harm anyone and your precious masters wand will snap!" Voldemort held out his hand, chanting something. Naomi's blood ran cold. She couldn't move, struggling to breathe. Voldemort gave a high cold laugh.

"Come." He whispered. His wand flew out from under Naomi's foot. Naomi fell backwards, hard on her back. Her wand flying and hitting the back wall. Colin and Lavender backed away again, trembling. Naomi tried to sit up, causing a sharp pain in her chest. Voldemort had his wand pointed at Naomi.

"Bring her closer." He said sharply. Malfoy walked over and grabbed her by the collar of her robes.

"Leave her alone! _Stupefy_!" called Colin. Malfoy easily deflected it back at Colin. Colin slumped over unconscious. Marie started sobbing uncontrollably. Lavender was about to burst into tears. The other boys shuddered in fear. Malfoy held Naomi eye level to Voldemort, he was a lot stronger then a person would guess. Voldemort snapped his fingers and the pain was gone. Naomi glared at him bitterly.

"You won't kill them… I won't let you." She snarled, her eyes narrowed. Voldemort pointed his wand at her neck, where it touched her skin it made her bleed. Naomi didn't flinch. She needed to surprise him again. She didn't need her wand.

"You are very wrong, what can you do to save them? You're like a cornered dog." He said coldly. Naomi growled. "Let's have fun with your little friends. I'll let you live to see them all suffer of course." He said, grinning again. Malfoy moved and slammed her into the stone wall and held her there. Voldemort advanced, making the students cower before him.

"Fight him! Don't let him play around with you! Fight him!" Naomi yelled.

"Stop barking girl!" said Malfoy. Naomi looked to the students. They all whimpered in fear.

"Hmmm… who first? How about you?" Voldemort pointed his wand at each one of the students until he stopped, pointing to a short kid with short black hair and freckles. It was David Perez. David flattened himself against the stone wall, whimpering. Voldemort flicked his wand and David was pulled forward in front of him.

"_Crucio_!" David fell screaming and twitching. Naomi's blood started to boil again. She couldn't do anything. She growled in frustration.

"Bastard! Leave em' alone!" she snarled. Malfoy laughed. Voldemort flicked his wand, stopping the curse.

"Do you really think yelling will do anything?" He taunted. This was the breaking point. Naomi couldn't stand him hurting them. Naomi lashed out, kicking Malfoy in the face. He let her go and she fell. Naomi charged at Voldemort but was hit with a stunning spell by one of the other Death Eaters.

David shivered on the cold stone ground. Voldemort turned away to the other kids.

"Now who's next?" pointing his wand at the first years, making them whimper.

"Don't touch them." Growled a voice. Voldemort looked back down at Naomi's fallen form, surprised. Naomi looked up at Voldemort, a line of blood dripping from her mouth. Her breathing was ragged again, her eyes now a golden color. Like a cats. Her teeth were clenched, revealing white fangs. Voldemort looked at her in amazement and disgust.

Naomi could taste blood in her mouth. Her blood was on fire. She dug her claw like nails into the stone, pushing herself up. She stood before him, her mind blank except for one thing. Revenge.

Naomi jumped at Voldemort, who was faster, jumped to the side.

"Kill her!" Voldemort bellowed, jumping backwards again. Avada Kedavra spells started flying everywhere. Naomi slashed at Malfoy's face with her claws, ripping the mask to shreds. He yelled out in pain, holding his face. Naomi jumped up and tackled another Death Eater. The last Death Eater shot Avada Kedavra at them, but hit the other Death Eater instead. Naomi leapt at the last one, slashing his chest. He cried out and fell.

"_Stupefy_!" Naomi was hit and was flung backwards in front of the students.

Malfoy and Voldemort stood before them. Malfoy's mask was gone and his face was covered in blood from the deep gash across it. Naomi sat up, her vision blurry.

Her eyes, teeth and nails were back to normal. She looked up at them in confusion.

_What happened? What just happened? He must of knocked me out. What did he do them? _She thought, turning to see them just as it was before. _I must not have been out long. _She turned back to Voldemort, whose wand was pointed at her forehead.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_ He said coldly. It all happened in slow motion. Everything became enveloped everything in a bright green light.

"Naomi! _Naomi!_"

Naomi opened her eyes; she was covered in cold sweat, breathing hard. She also had a major headache. Mika, Inuyasha, Miroku and Sango were sitting next to her. She sat up, looking at them.

"Hey, are you ok?" asked Mika.

"I… Yea. I just… Nothing…" she trailed off.

"You kept thrashing around in your sleep. We tried to wake you up, but you wouldn't." said Sango.

"You kept yelling things." said Miroku. Naomi looked away, bringing her knees to her chest.

"Sorry, it was just a stupid dream. I'm fine." She replied quietly.

"You sure?" Mika asked. Naomi nodded.

"I'll be fine." she said, her voice stronger. She felt like there was a golf ball stuck in her throat. She quickly got up and walked out of the hut. Not looking back.

It was a cloudy morning. Dark clouds rumbling with thunder. Naomi sat on a large rock by the stream that ran through the village. Angry tears falling down her face.

_Why did they have to die… _She pulled her knees to her chest again, hugging them. She wiped away her tears and looked at the swirling water. Something in that dream wasn't right. Was that really her that did that to Malfoy? How did the others die?

More hot tears fell down her face. Why didn't she just break the wand? Why didn't she? No, she had to taunt him. They probably all suffered horrid deaths because of her. She was just so arrogant, wanting to make him suffer. She cursed to herself. It was all her fault. She became blind, she wasn't thinking.

She sat there for most of the day, her mind in turmoil over her stupidity. It was dusk when Inuyasha finally went over to see her. She hadn't eaten all day. He walked over and sat beside her.

"Hey." He said. Naomi just ignored him, her face buried in her arms.

"You should eat… You've been sitting here all day." He tried again.

"They're all dead… Because of me." She said softly. "I don't deserve to live…" She started to cry again. She didn't care anymore. It was her fault that they died. Just because of one little error.

Inuyasha didn't know what to say. He felt bad for her. He wondered what happened, but thought it best not to ask right now.

"Inuyasha…" Naomi asked through her tears. "Have you ever done something so terrible, made such a stupid mistake. That you wish you would just die?" Inuyasha looked to her, then back to the water. Yea, he'd made a mistake. It cost him the woman he cared for.

"Yes." Naomi looked at him, looking surprised. So he told her, the whole tale. By the time he was finished it was dark. The moon sat above them, rising lazily across the sky. It felt good to tell someone, to get it off his chest. Naomi told him she'd return the favor. She told him about the dream, and about what happened.

It was strange. It felt like they've known each other for years, instead of just a few days. They had very similar experiences.

They sat out there for a couple hours, just talking. Naomi was slowly starting to become incomprehensive from tiredness. After a while of silence, her head drooped sideways onto Inuyasha's shoulder. He wasn't to sure about the arrangements at first, but in the end kinda enjoyed it. He smiled. The girl was a lot like Kagome, but at the same time, totally different. Inuyasha hadn't felt this calm and at peace with himself for a long time…

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	7. Chapter 7: Tainted Shards

Chapter 7

Tainted Shards

Naomi woke up, and looked around. Somehow she had ended up back in her bed. She sat up and yawned and her stomach gave a loud growl. She forgot she hadn't eaten for a day. So she went and found Mika who was fixing breakfast. Naomi gladly ate, having over three helpings. She then decided that she would take a bath. Mika advised using the hot springs outside the village. The river was much too cold and the springs had plenty of cover. Miroku volunteered to take her to the springs, but got slapped and got put to the task of watching Nai while Sango went to pick herbs. Mika had to go and see how the man with the broken leg was doing so it left Inuyasha having to go and show her the way. It really wasn't that far away. Naomi assured Inuyasha that she could find her way back and that he could go back. He agreed, saying that he'd be bored sitting there anyway.

The springs were surrounded by tall bushes, to Naomi's relief. She undressed and got in. It felt good to rinse out her hair and stuff. After she was done, she got back dressed and walked back to the village. She was walking down the dirt road when she heard a loud roar behind her. Naomi whirled around to see a large rat demon. Naomi took out her wand and yelled "_Impedimenta_!" The demon was thrown backwards. Not what the spell was suppost to do. The demon got up and charged at Naomi again. Naomi felt a twinge of panic, but ignored it. She needed to stay calm.

"_Stupefy_!" She yelled, it hit the demon and it was flung backwards. Naomi sighed, the demon had stopped moving. _At least that spell worked properly…_ she thought, turning around and walking away.

She didn't know that the demon got up again. It shook it's head, annoyed that it's prey kept knocking it backward. It gave another irritated, screechy roar, making Naomi stop. She looked back to see the demon rat charging at her. Not knowing what else to do, Naomi ran.

It was pretty useless. The demon quickly was catching up. Naomi was almost to the village when she saw a red blur run up and pick her up. She was now suddenly up in the air. They landed and she realized it was in fact, Inuyasha. Inuyasha set her down, and then turned back to the demon. The demon gave another screechy cry before charging at them.

"Stupid worthless demon…" he growled before jumping at it, claws bared.

_Is he… protecting me?_ Naomi thought this was kind of strange. Flattering, but still strange. They haven't known each other that long.

"Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!" Inuyasha yelled, slashing at the demon. Making yellow blades that sliced the demon to pieces. Inuyasha landed behind the puddle of blood, and then turned.

"Hey, you ok?" Naomi nodded. She walked up next to him, looking at the pool of blood.

"You sure made nice work of that demon." She complemented.

"Please, that was nuthin'." He replied proudly. Naomi sighed. Why the sudden need to show off? She looked at the pool of blood, and saw something sparkle. She crouched town to get a closer look.

"What is it?" Inuyasha asked, crouching down beside her. Naomi reached over and tried to grab it, but it sent what felt like an electrical shock throughout her body. She quickly let it go and fell backwards, holding her hand.

"Hey, hey. You alright?" Inuyasha asked, wondering what happened. He took a closer look at what she was trying to grab. "Hey, wait a minute…" Inuyasha picked up what was sparkling. It was a Shikon no Tama jewel shard. It emitted a dark and powerful aura.

"What the heck is that thing? It like, electrocuted me!" said Naomi, scowling. Inuyasha just looked at the shard in disbelief. Wasn't the shard now powerless? Why was it emitting such a dark aura?

"Cum on, lets go back to the others." said Inuyasha, getting up and walking towards the village, still looking at the jewel in his hand. Naomi frowned, she didn't like to be ignored, but followed anyway.

Inuyasha continued forward, until he came to Mika's hut. His mind riddled with questions.

"Mika! Come here! I want to show you something!" Inuyasha called. Mika appeared in the doorway.

"What is it Inuyasha?" she asked, leaning against the door frame. Inuyasha held out his hand, revealing the shard. Mika looked at it, her expression turned very serious.

"Is that a shard of the Shikon no Tama, Inuyasha?" she asked, Inuyasha nodded. She reached over to touch it, but immediately backed away. "I can't even touch it it's so tainted. We must speak to Kaede about this." She said. Inuyasha scoffed.

"She probably doesn't even know anything anymore."

"She may be old, but is still wise. Well… Mostly. Come, we shall go and see her." Mika walked off. Inuyasha and Naomi followed. They didn't walk far, they stopped in front of another hut, and stepped inside.

Kaede was sitting in bed, propped up by the wall. She stared daggers at Inuyasha.

"And why does _thee _come to a place where he isn't welcome." Said Kaede Bitterly. She looked much older then she was so many years ago. Inuyasha held up the blackened jewel shard in his fingers.

"This is why woman, why is the jewel so tainted?" he asked. Kaede looked at the jewel, in shock.

"That… That aura… She didn't…. How could she?" Kaede moaned. Inuyasha looked at Kaede suspiciously.

"What do you know?" he asked. Kaede started shivering. Mika gave Kaede another blanket. Kaede gave a tired sigh.

"Kagome let Midoriko's soul free from the jewel, correct?" Inuyasha nodded. Kaede gave another tired sigh.

"She shouldn't of. Now that her soul is gone, there is nothing to fight the evil in the jewel. It can never be purified." She said, a grave look on her face. Something clicked in Inuyasha's brain_. That's why Naomi and Mika couldn't touch the shard. But I can… I'm a demon. _

"What are we gonna do?" asked Naomi. Kaede gave a wheezy breath then coughed.

"Ye must gather the shards. Once done so you must destroy them." Kaede wheezed.

"But how will we find them?" Inuyasha asked, for Kagome wasn't with them now.

"Stupid dog. Did ye think I would ever tell a traitor like you?" she growled.

"Kaede, Inuyasha is not evil. He was being controlled by Naraku!" said Mika.

"Hush child, do ye really think that I am such a fool? Naraku was slain long before."

"Inuyasha was under a spell! It broke once Kagome left." Mika said again.

"Do not speak to me such lies! Now leave me be so that I may rest." Wheezed Kaede again. Inuyasha turned on his heels and left. That stupid woman. She is too old to remember again. Inuyasha growled to himself, he stopped beside the river. He looked out at the land, unseeing. Will his past forever haunt him?

Inuyasha felt a hand on his shoulder, he turned to see it was Naomi. She looked at him sadly.

"Inuyasha." She said softly. "I'm sorry she didn't believe you."

Inuyasha looked at her, her eyes looked more green than hazel in the light. He sighed.

"That old bat will keep ranting till the day she dies." Said Inuyasha, looking back at the river. Naomi rested her chin on his shoulder.

"Oh Inuyasha, it is so sad how we are alike. We both have troubled pasts that will forever haunt us." She said softly. Inuyasha looked down at the ground. Yea, it's true. Both from different worlds, but with the same problem… the past.

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Authors Note: Hello! Please review! Why should I write if no one reads it? I hope more people review. Sorry for such a short chapter .

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